ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq arrested 46 people accused of buying and selling voter cards, the Iraqi National Security Services (INSS) announced on Saturday, the second official day of campaigning for the November parliamentary vote that many parties have warned could be marred by fraud.
“The tactical regiment detachments of the National Security Service carried out separate security operations in Baghdad, Anbar, Diwaniyah, Nineveh, and western Nineveh, which resulted in the arrest of 46 suspects involved in buying and selling electoral cards,” the INSS said in a statement on Facebook.
They also seized more than 1,800 voter cards.
Approximately 27 million people have the right to vote, but only those with biometric voting cards will be able to cast a ballot.
Several parties have expressed concerns about the risk of fraud in the election. Senior Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) politburo member Hoshyar Zebari made such a warning in August and called on judicial and international bodies to intervene.
He alleged that massive sums of money are being funneled to candidates and some groups are “buying voter cards from citizens,” which he said “confirms that the upcoming elections will be fraudulent.”
Influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr in March announced his intention to boycott the vote, citing widespread corruption. In April, he rejected a formal invitation from Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid to reverse his decision, saying he “will not participate with the corrupt, the insolent, and the enemies of the people.”
The Nasr (Victory) Coalition, led by former Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, announced in June that it will not field its own candidates because of concerns over electoral fraud. The Coalition will not take part in “elections based on political money and lacking the determination to impose legal controls that prevent manipulation, vote-buying, and the exploitation of public funds, foreign money, and state resources,” it said in a statement.
The electoral commission has barred over 700 candidates from running due to violations and alleged ties to the ousted Baath party.
Iraq will hold parliamentary elections on November 11.